If you ever think you're having a bad day on the Ranch, DON'T SAY IT OUT LOUD!!!

Well, we were having a rough nite. Cows eating our lunch, trying to gore the horse. Pinning me in the pickup. Calving problems, kids being obstinate, etc. Generally, just a rough nite.

So, we decided to go to town & get supper. Cause it was 7:30, and I hadn't even started supper. We talked about ice cream @ the Dairy Sweet, & wondered what flavor they had on Wed nite. Crap, the line is like 8 cars long & there are 4 people standing @ the window. Amidst the tears, we decided to have Casey's pizza & get some ice cream from their freezer.

So, the girls are eating their ice cream. Squeak is eating a pizza crust, I am talking on the phone to my Mom, & Honey is driving. We noticed in town that something SouthWest of town was burning......We get 5 miles from home, & it is still burning BIG BLACK smoke. We turn the corner 3 miles from the house & I say to mom that the fire is near our house.....

Then we are 1.5 miles from home & I say "SOMETHING AT OUR HOUSE IS ON FIRE, gotta call you back" I call 911 and let them know something @ our house is on fire.....

We drive up to the house & see a HUGE fire all in one spot. Exactly where we left the White Truck, cause we were in a hurry. The flames are coming out of the windows, the hood, everywhere! A round bale of hay was 20 feet from it and on fire. We couldn't get to the hay trailer with the pickup, so Honey grabs the tractor & drags it out of the way, cause its tires were getting VERY hot on that side.

So, the old white truck is no more. I haven't looked for a pic yet, but I will. We were lucky. You see we usually park it right in front of the house, and the wind would have caught the house on fire, just like it caught the bale on fire. We were lucky, that we didn't park it in the barn like we do when it is cold. We were lucky, we weren't at home & hurt by the explosions. (Neighbors 5 miles away heard 3 or 4 VERY big explosions)

We were VERY LUCKY that we had hauled all of the hay yesterday. Otherwise we would have BEEN IN the white truck picking up a bale while we were in town.

We are lucky!!!
We are thankful for all the neighbors that stopped by & the wonderful firemen that were here so quickly!!!
I am thankful we had a bad night, & didn't "put the truck away" either in the barn or by the house.
I am thankful!!!

Thankfulness is natural

Thankfulness. That word is a mouthful, but the things it brings to mind are simple. God. Family. Farm. Cows. Horses. Nature. Natural.

I am thankful for all of theese things and each one is dependent and brought to us by the others on my thankfull list.

God gave us our family, and gave us to our families. We need to remember that without Him, none of theese things are possible.

Our families are a gift from God and we need to treat them as sacred gifts. We need to make sure that we are always, ALWAYS thankful and loving towards our families.

Cows are also a special gift we are entrusted with. We show our respect and appreciation for these cattle by lovingly raising them for their intended purposes. Wonderful beef and great mothering (or siring) abilities. We should all treat them with nothing but the utmost respect and care for the entire time we have them, including their harvest. This means we should also enjoy all the beef and byproducts entirely and not waste anything.

My horses are my wonderful luxury. I am so thankful that I was given the opportunity at a young age to enjoy the love of a horse. That pony was (and is) my best friend through all of those rough adolescent years. I am so thankful that he was there to listen to all of my problems, and to help me learn to love each and every animal on the planet.

I am thankful for nature. This sounds simple and plain, and that is just the way I mean it. I love each and every sound and thing in nature (even the annoying Asian LadyBugs).

I am thankful that we are natural. I love that we can put a calf back in his natural environment (grass) and it will grow and mature into natural, wonderful beef. I love natural pasture and letting nature show us what we need to do to improve. I am thankful that God made it natural for us to love him and life on the ranch.

I am also thankful to the wonderful, creative people that read and enjoy my blog.
I hope all of you will have a wonderful Thanksgiving and stay safe!
Shanen